Petens



(No Model.)

0. W. NICHOLSON.

. PEANUT SEPARATING AND ASSORTING TABLE. No. 301,067. PatentedJune 24. 1884.

Mrs STATES AT PFIQE PEANUT SEPARATING AND ASSORTIING TABLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 301,067, dated June 24:, 1884:.

Application filed April 16, 1884. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern- Be it known that I, CHARLES W. NICHOL- SON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Assamoosick, in the county of Southampton and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Peanut Separating and Asserting Tables, andI do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to tables intended es pecially for assorting peanuts; and it consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of the several parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View, Fig. 2 a side view, and Fig. 3 a vertical longitudinal section, of a machine constructed according to my invention.

The top frame is composed of side bars, A, connected at their forward ends by a crossbar, a, and at or near their rear ends by a back board, B, the latter being, in the construction shown, projected above the side bars. The object of this back board is'to prevent the nuts being brushed off the rear end of the riddle in the operation of sorting, and it is manifest its elevation will be relative to the assorting position of said riddle-that is to say, I intend the said back board to be elevated above the back end of said riddle when the latter is in its assorting position.

The top frame is mounted on suitable supporting legs, D D, preferably crossed, as shown, to form aconvenient seat for the trough E, which is arranged below the riddle, presently described. One end of this trough is by preference hinged at e on one side, and provided with a hook or other suitable latch on its opposite side, so that the screenings, 8m, may be readily removed from the said trough.

The top frame and the supporting-legs constitute what, for convenience of reference, I denominate the main frame of my machine. In practice I prefer to provide said main frame with hooks 7, located, as will be understood from the drawings, so as to support a sack, F,

which is suitably arranged to receive the nuts from the discharging end of the riddle. The riddle G has its frame pivoted at G to the top frame at a point near the back board, and rests at or near its forward edge on the crossbar a. The opposite or rear edge of the riddle turns up in front of and close to the back board, as most clearly shown in dotted lines, Fig. 3. Where so desired, the said edge of the riddle may butt up against the under side of the back board, instead of in front of same, as shown. In this latter arrangement the use of cross-bar a as a stop or support for the forward end of the riddle would be dispensed with, and it is manifest the riddle could be stopped or supported in its horizontal or assorting position in various ways other than those before described. The wire or screen portion gof the riddle is arranged so as to deliver. the screenings into the trough E. I make the mesh of the screen to suit the work for which the table is designed.

As stated, the machine is primarily intended for use with peanuts; but obviously it is capable of use for sorting different articles, such as hickory nuts, oysters, potatoes, 820. It will be'noticed the pivot of the riddle is at a point approximately over the rear edge of the trough, and that there is a space between said trough and the back board through which the nuts pass when the riddle is tilted, as shown in Fig. 3. The nuts are poured onto the riddle and agitated thereon by hand or suitable mechanism, as desired, until the smaller nuts, the dirt, if any remain among the nuts, and what are called Spanish nuts are passed through the screen into the trough. The good nuts are then delivered onto the floor or into a bag or other suitable recepta ole by tilting the riddle, as clearly shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

'1. The combination of a suitable top frame, a back board, and a riddle pivoted in the top frame, and having its rearend abutted against and movable to and from the under side of the said back board, the latter being projected above the plane of the riddle when said riddle is in its normal position, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of the top frame, the

supporting-legs, the back board mounted on the top frame near the rear edge of same, the

of its ends removable, as described, and the riddle pivoted in the top frame, and adapted trough arranged below the top frame and in to be tilted and deliver the screened articles I 5 advance of the back board, and the riddle pivoted in the top frame and adapted to be tilted and deliver the screened articles between the back board and the trough, substantially as set forth.

3. The herein-described assorting-table, composed'of the top frame, the back board mounted on the rear end of same, the trough supported below the top frame, and having one between the trough'and the back board, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES W. NICHOLSON. Witnesses? E. O. BARRETT, THos. J. WHITFIELD. 

